A National Merit Scholar, champion tennis players and equestrians, and several with distinguished relatives are among the 15 high school seniors who’ve accepted a bid to be Central City Flower Girls in 2008.
They will be presented on June 28 as the Central City Opera opens its 76th season. Earlier this week, the girls met for the first time when the opening night committee hosted a tea in their honor at the Governor’s Mansion.
Members of the Class of 2008 are:Sarah Grace Ammons: A senior at Kent Denver School, she is the daughter of LeeAnne and Dr. Mark Ammons of Englewood; Mrs. Ammons is co-chairing the preview party for the 2008 Denver Antiques Show and Sale, which benefits the Central City Opera House Association. At Kent, Sarah is a member of the field hockey and lacrosse teams and is president of the El Pomar Youth in Community Service Club. She also is an accomplished equestrian and volunteers at Connections, a therapeutic riding program for children with autism.Allison McDonald Bathgate: Also a senior at Kent, Ali is the daughter of Margaret and Steve Bathgate of Englewood. She’s an outstanding athlete, playing varsity tennis and field hockey for Kent; in the latter sport she was named co-MVP of the all-conference first team. Ali’s skill as a freestyle skier enabled her to place in Junior Olympics competition and be awarded the 2007 Les Streeter Cup for Outstanding Performance. She volunteers for Kiva.org, an organization that provides micro financing for small companies in developing countries; Habitat for Humanity, where she helped build four houses; and Kent’s Summerbridge program.Elizabeth Ashton Eliot: The daughter of Missy and John Eliot of Denver, Elizabeth attends Colorado Academy where she is part of the highly selective Community Leadership Program and the National Society of High School Scholars. She plays piano and guitar and had the lead in CA’s recent production of “By The Skin of Their Teeth.” She’s a fifth-generation native Coloradan, and her mother is active in the Central City Opera House Association Guild and the Denver Antiques Show and Sale.Arianna Milan Gerdes: A National Merit Scholar from Kent Denver School, Arianna is the daughter of Virginia Danna and Dr. John Charles Gerdes of Columbine Valley. She’s a National Merit Scholar from Kent Denver School, where four of her photographs hang in Kent’s permanent collection. She also won first place in the Vistas in Education national essay contest in French. Her volunteer work includes the Kent chapter of El Pomar Youth in Community Service; writing funding proposals for various nonprofit organizations; Locks of Love, to which she has twice donated hair; and Adam’s Camp, where she has assisted physical and occupational therapists in their work with disabled children.Georgia Pynchon Grey: The daughter of Sarah and Schuyler Grey III of Denver, Georgia also is the sister of 2006 Flower Girl Carter Grey. She has made Honor Roll every trimester at Colorado Academy, where she is co-editor of the literary magazine, Kokopelli, and a member of the Community Leadership Program. Georgia plays varsity field hockey and lacrosse, has hiked almost 200 miles through the Alps and kayaks Class IV rivers. Her family is among the original investors/founders of Vail.Alexandra Scripps Groos: A fourth-generation Coloradan, Lexy is the daughter of Catherine Chase Groos and the late Alexander Groos. Her great-grandfather is the late architect Temple Hoyne Buell, who was instrumental in the development of Cherry Creek. His other projects include Denver’s Historic Paramount Theatre and Buell Theatre in the Denver Performing Arts Complex is named for him. An accomplished equestrian, Lexy placed fourth in the prestigious Pony Finals in Fairfield, Ct. She loves acting and plans to enroll at the University of California Los Angeles in the fall.Elizabeth Anne Marsico: Also a fourth-generation Coloradan, Elizabeth, a student at Cherry Creek High School, is the daughter of Tammy and Chris Marsico of Cherry Hills Village. She has won numerous awards for tennis, among them the No. 3 state champion singles player. She is a member of the U.S. Tennis Association National Junior Fed Cup Tennis Team, and will play for the University of Southern California’s Division I tennis team. In addition to tennis, Elizabeth is a member of the National Honor Society, DECA and volunteers as a peer tutor.Erin Anne McGonagle: Yet another fourth-generation Coloradan, Erin plans to attend Williams College following her graduation from Kent. Her parents are >Anne and Tom McGonagle of Cherry Hills Village. Her great-grandfather, Thomas L. McGonagle, owned and operated the Denver Gear & Parts Co., while her parents and grandparents have long been associated with Round-Up Riders of the Rockies, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Denver and The Children’s Hospital. A high honor student, Erin has been a four-year starter for Kent’s varsity soccer team and winner of the 2007 regional Outstanding Attorney award for Kent’s Mock Trial team. She founded Just For Kicks, a program to provide soccer equipment for children and has three of her photographs in the Kent Denver permanent collection. Her family home was on the 2007 L’Esprit de Noel tour, which benefits the Central City Opera.Samantha Rand McMillan: A member of the Headmaster’s list at Kent and recipient of an academic award for chemistry, Sam is the daughter of Edward Neil McMillan and the late Mrs. McMillan. Her grandfather, Dr. Hugh McMillan, was a founder of Colorado Outward Bound and served as a physicians for the U.S. Women’s Ski Team and the Denver Broncos. She plays basketball for Kent, volunteers for Praying Hands Ranch and is a member of the North American Young Riders, where she was part of its 2004 championship team.Elizabeth Helen Craig Pickard: A student at Kent, Liz is the granddaughter of the late Atwill Gilman, a longtime member of the Central City Opera House Association board who also served as master of ceremonies for the Flower Girl presentation. Her grandmother, Callae Gilman, now serves on the opera board. Liz is the daughter of former Flower Girl Anne Pickard and her husband, Rusty, of Englewood and volunteers with the Denver Dumb Friends League. Her great-grandparents are Temple Hoyne Buell and Marjorie McIntosh Buell.Olivia Sullivan Ross: An honor roll student at Colorado Academy, Olivia plans to continue her education at Johns Hopkins University, where she will also play field hockey. She’s the daughter of Mary and Jeff Ross of Denver; her mother has served on the opera guild board for the past several years. At CA, Olivia co-chaired student HOPE, a student-run project that feeds and provides clothing and other gifts to disadvantaged families. She also played lacrosse, field hockey and basketball and sang in the school choir.Haley Marie Sorensen: One of six officers for the Kent Denver Credit Union, the nation’s largest student-run credit union, Haley is also involved in Mock Trial, is a tutor in Kent’s Breakthrough program, and is a member of the varsity golf team. Her mother, Jodi, is chairing the 2008 Denver Antiques Show and Sale while her father, Bill, was a member of the Boettcher Foundation board. The family resides in Denver.Ann Marie Stookesberry: Following her graduation from Kent, Annie plans to attend Boston University and play on its lacrosse team. The daughter of Ginger and Steve Stookesberry of Denver, she is an academic honor roll student who spent the summer of 2006 in the Dominican Republic volunteering on a community service project. Her great-great-grandfather, Leonard Henry Eicholtz, helped build the railroad line from Denver to Cheyenne while her grandfather, Leonard Henry Gemmill, is a distinguished engineering alumnus of the University of Colorado at Boulder.Allison Louise Welsh: An honor roll student at Cherry Creek High School, Allie is the daughter of Amy Welsh of Parker and Mark Welsh of Greenwood Village. She is a National Top 20-ranked speech and debate competitor; played on Creek’s state champion field hockey and lacrosse teams; sang in St. Peter’s Basilica with the Colorado Children’s Chorale tour choir; spent a month doing community service in Costa Rica; and received the Bruin Award for excellence in skill and leadership. She’ll attend the University of California-Berkeley. Allie’s aunt, Ann Clark, chaired Central City’s opening night in 2006.Megan Elizabeth Zajkowski: An honor roll student at Colorado Academy, Meggy spent last summer in Great Britain, studying at Oxford University. She’s the daughter of Amy Harvey and Gregg Zajkowski of Denver and her interests include art, photography, cooking, fly fishing, traveling and reading. Her great-great-great uncle, Flavious Jordan, settled in Morrison in 1873 and his son, Andy Jordan, drove the stagecoach between Morrison and nearby towns.

Pictures taken at the Flower Girl tea can be seen at denverpost.com/SeenGallery.

Denver Post Society Editor Joanne Davidson can be reached at 303-809-1314 or jdavidson@denverpost.com.

Study after study has shown that when it comes to charitable fundraisers, Denver has more per capita than any comparably sized city in the nation. Joanne Davidson has been covering them for The Denver Post since 1985, coming here from her native California where she'd spent the previous seven years as San Francisco bureau chief for U.S. News & World Report magazine.